And so it continues..

Bonjour to you all,

Here I am, 2:34am, my bedroom lit dimly by the glow of my iPad, about to tell you a bit about where I am with this whole France adventure. If you've been following me on Instagram, you basically know what I'm up to every few hours or so... (sorry, I am going to try to turn it down a notch haha), but if you don't have Instagram, or twitter or facebook (hello Papa and Granny, and Mom..), then you might be wondering how things have been going.

To sum it up in a few words; things have been great. I'm feeling more confident with my students. I even had to raise my voice the other day to a student who would not stay in his seat and refused to participate in the activity that the rest of the kids were doing.. And it takes a lot for me to raise my voice. I've started designing my own worksheets and lessons, and I must admit, I am thoroughly enjoying the designing aspect. Now, I know that might be a quirky thing to say but you might have a future curriculum design specialist on your hands. ;) All joking aside, the school aspect has been fulfilling and every time I finish a lesson if feel a sense of accomplishment and pride... and of course, a bit of relief haha.

Also after 40 days of being here, I now have social security, a bank card and account (thanks for the help, Ariel), health insurance, a home, a job and some pretty great friends. Not bad.

I've also have made some exciting travel plans that will be happening over the next few months. This Saturday, Katie (my roommate), Ariel (my Canadian friend), and I will be going to Paris. We plan to checkout a very famous bookstore called Shakespeare and Company, laze around the grounds alongside the Eiffel Tower, have lunch at La Ratonde - a café where notable artists and famous writers such as Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald wined and dined, and lastly enjoy a concert put on by an American singer/songwriter, Tyler Ward at La Flèche d'Or. Sounds like an incredible day to me.

Then the following week I have a former Université Sainte-Anne friend coming to Tours for the weekend (as she's living in Besançon, France, doing the exact same program as me). One thing I've been dying to do since I've been here is visit Chateau de Chambord located not too far away from Tours. So that's one thing on our agenda - besides sipping rosés in Place Plum and scenically strolling along the Loire, of course.

Then there's Lyon, France and Geneva, Switzerland during the first weekend of December, home to Canada for Christmas and New Years, and a weekend trip to Belgium to visit and new friend I've met here. February brings Marseille, France, Northern Ireland and England with my cousin, Sydney coming all the way from Alberta. Lots to be excited for and even more to be thankful for. But I'll keep ya'll up to date on those adventures as they come.

As always, hope everything is well. My Christmas countdown is on, meaning my Michael Bublé Xmas album is on repeat and in full swing (my roommate things I'm nuts). You can say I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. Being away makes you realize how important the people in your lives are. Not to get all sappy, lovey-dovey on you but being away from fam and friends has probably been the toughest part because of how encouraging, supportive and loving a lot of you are.

I must sleep now.
Love, love always,
Sam